GMB
Active member
I have been lurking around here for quite a while and a few months already once indicated that I might be prepared to jump into the MFDB world. Guy warned me and reminded me of the subtitle of this forum—but to no avail :ROTFL:.
I am not a professional and I don’t intend to make a living out of photography. It’s a hobby and my day job fortunately allows me to indulge in some nice gear. I shoot mostly travel, landscape (including seascapes and cityscapes), some abstracts, and portraits of friends and family. May main system is the Leica M (first M8 and now M9).
The reason I want to go into MFDB is that I like big prints, in particular if they are sharp and reveal a lot of detail. I find the size adds a totally different dimension to the visual impact of certain photos. For example, I was fascinated by the visual impact of some Burtinsky and Ronald Fisher prints (I know that they are not only strong because they are big but also because these are dammed good photographers, but their large prints have a very different impact than the same print but smaller).
I looked at the various systems available and I think I am decided to go fort the H4D40 unless it turns out that I have an issue with the ergonomics of that camera (I live in Brussels and, believe it or not, there is no Hassi dealer in the capital of Europe :thumbdown:, so I still need to make the trip to Antwerp or Paris). I thought about the P1 40+ but I think I’d prefer the H4D. I find the True Focus and also the TS adapter pretty nifty and innovative concepts. I also thought hard about the S2 and in the beginning was thinking/hoping that that could be the right system. But then there are simply too many issues with that camera and while money is not the key driver behind my decision-making, the lenses (if and when available) are simply in a different price league altogether.
I would not be posting this if there were not still a few issues on which I hope to get some guidance from the collective wisdom of this forum.
1. This may sound insane, but I wonder whether 40MP are enough if one wants to print say 1.5mx1.8 meters (60”x70”). How much would one gain if one goes to 50 or 60MP? (I know one gains 25% and 50% more pixels but what difference does that make as regards the print)?
2. I am inclined to now go for the H4D40 and then decide on a upgrade if and when I think it does not have enough MP. Any reason why that could be a stupid idea?
3. I have used a Nodal Ninja 5 for the Leica. Have some of you used it with a Hassy or P1 and what was your experience?
4. What lens set up could you recommend?
• I am inclined to get the 28 for landscape but I wonder whether it could be to wide as the sole landscape lens.
• What is the best portrait lens? I am looking for something with a large format like transition from focus to out of focus area (a bit similar to the 75 lux for the M9) (I have seen some shots by David Farkas with the 70mm on the S2 who had that look and that almost made me revisit my decision as regards the S2).
• What could you recommend for macro work (flowers etc.)?
• Finally, how useful / good are the zooms? For those who have them, how often and for what applications do you use them. FYI, before moving to the M system a few years ago, I was shooting almost only zooms for many years and giving up zooms was one of my main worries. Now I don’t miss them and often go out with only one lens to keep things simple.
5. I am also still asking myself the question whether I should go for tech camera rather than a Hassi or P1 camera. What advantage as regards image quality does a tech camera have over the Hassi (other than that it allows tilt and shift)? Can you get something like this with a Hassi (in particular number 3 and 4) http://forum.getdpi.com/forum/newthread.php?do=newthread&f=10?
Sorry for asking so many questions and many thanks in advance for your help.
I am not a professional and I don’t intend to make a living out of photography. It’s a hobby and my day job fortunately allows me to indulge in some nice gear. I shoot mostly travel, landscape (including seascapes and cityscapes), some abstracts, and portraits of friends and family. May main system is the Leica M (first M8 and now M9).
The reason I want to go into MFDB is that I like big prints, in particular if they are sharp and reveal a lot of detail. I find the size adds a totally different dimension to the visual impact of certain photos. For example, I was fascinated by the visual impact of some Burtinsky and Ronald Fisher prints (I know that they are not only strong because they are big but also because these are dammed good photographers, but their large prints have a very different impact than the same print but smaller).
I looked at the various systems available and I think I am decided to go fort the H4D40 unless it turns out that I have an issue with the ergonomics of that camera (I live in Brussels and, believe it or not, there is no Hassi dealer in the capital of Europe :thumbdown:, so I still need to make the trip to Antwerp or Paris). I thought about the P1 40+ but I think I’d prefer the H4D. I find the True Focus and also the TS adapter pretty nifty and innovative concepts. I also thought hard about the S2 and in the beginning was thinking/hoping that that could be the right system. But then there are simply too many issues with that camera and while money is not the key driver behind my decision-making, the lenses (if and when available) are simply in a different price league altogether.
I would not be posting this if there were not still a few issues on which I hope to get some guidance from the collective wisdom of this forum.
1. This may sound insane, but I wonder whether 40MP are enough if one wants to print say 1.5mx1.8 meters (60”x70”). How much would one gain if one goes to 50 or 60MP? (I know one gains 25% and 50% more pixels but what difference does that make as regards the print)?
2. I am inclined to now go for the H4D40 and then decide on a upgrade if and when I think it does not have enough MP. Any reason why that could be a stupid idea?
3. I have used a Nodal Ninja 5 for the Leica. Have some of you used it with a Hassy or P1 and what was your experience?
4. What lens set up could you recommend?
• I am inclined to get the 28 for landscape but I wonder whether it could be to wide as the sole landscape lens.
• What is the best portrait lens? I am looking for something with a large format like transition from focus to out of focus area (a bit similar to the 75 lux for the M9) (I have seen some shots by David Farkas with the 70mm on the S2 who had that look and that almost made me revisit my decision as regards the S2).
• What could you recommend for macro work (flowers etc.)?
• Finally, how useful / good are the zooms? For those who have them, how often and for what applications do you use them. FYI, before moving to the M system a few years ago, I was shooting almost only zooms for many years and giving up zooms was one of my main worries. Now I don’t miss them and often go out with only one lens to keep things simple.
5. I am also still asking myself the question whether I should go for tech camera rather than a Hassi or P1 camera. What advantage as regards image quality does a tech camera have over the Hassi (other than that it allows tilt and shift)? Can you get something like this with a Hassi (in particular number 3 and 4) http://forum.getdpi.com/forum/newthread.php?do=newthread&f=10?
Sorry for asking so many questions and many thanks in advance for your help.